TRAVEL | GERMAN MARKETS
the square a perfect and harmonious balance. A statue of Friedrich von Schiller - Germany’s most famous poet - admirably finishes it off. As such, it provides a marvellous setting for a Christmas market. Every year during Advent, pleasant
aromatic smells of roasted almonds, hot cocoa and mulled wine greet visitors to the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church Christmas market, near to the Kurfürstendamm, the opposite to Unter den Linden when the city was divided. More than 170 craft and Christmas market stands are set up around the historical church in the centre of the city while an abundance of fairy-lights surround the elaborately-decorated Breitscheidplatz, where the focal- point is a 20-metre-high Christmas tree.
But Berlin’s largest Christmas
market can be found in Spandau Old Town which hosts 250 stands during the week and 400 at weekends plus
there’s a stage programme (including a Christmas-themed rock concert every Friday) ensuring all-round family entertainment. But with more than 50 Christmas
markets to explore in Berlin, I bet Miss X and I will still end up at Gendarmenmarkt. As Cologne’s a main hub for the German railway network, Miss X and I usually spend a couple of days here on our way back to England via Brussels to catch Eurostar to London. We find the city one of our favourite destinations and not only did we enjoy the Cathedral Christmas market last year but we also found a brilliant jazz club at Papa Joe’s in the Buttermarkt close by to the old fischmarkt by the river. Cologne easily competes with Berlin on quality but not on volume. They have only seven markets to go for. But, that’s not bad, eh! Among them are four biggies located at Cologne Cathedral, Alter Markt, Neumarkt
(Cologne’s oldest) and Rudolfplatz. Every year these four markets alone attract almost two million visitors. Then there’s the Floating Christmas
market and the Christmas market at Stadtgarten while this year there’s a new one to add to the list - the Cologne Harbour Christmas market, located near the city’s famous chocolate museum. And that’s worth a visit in its own right. But with all these markets, I think the most impressive is at Cologne Cathedral, due to the huge backdrop of the imposing Gothic-designed cathedral dedicated to Saint Peter and the Blessed Virgin Mary. And beneath the cathedral you’ll find the largest Christmas tree in the Rhineland complemented by well over 160 festively-designed wooden pavilions. Here you can watch artisans at work, enjoy mulled wine sipped out of festive-decorated mugs or you can choose from an unlimited choice of sweets and local delicacies.
But Cologne has something very special in their cathedral that everyone - well, nearly everyone - makes a visit to see. About 6.5 million people visit the cathedral every year making it the most visited sight in Germany. And at Christmas time it’s heaving. Miss X, my erstwhile travelling companion, insists that we go there on every visit. Here in Cologne you’ll find the relics of the Three Wise Men (The Magi). As you can imagine the Holy Boys
are graciously housed in a large gilded and decorated triple golden sarcophagus studded with Byzantine jewels placed above (and behind) the high altar which is considered the high point of Mosan art. This is a regional style of Romanesque art emanating from the valleys of the Meuse and Rhine. The reliquary - the largest in the western world - is a major tourist attraction and thousands of visitors throng to this well-loved cathedral every year to gaze in wonder and behold!
Tony Cooper travelled to London with National Express then Rail Europe looked after all of his ticketing from London St Pancras to various destinations in Germany. Return fares from London to Cologne start at £103 in standard class. All prices are per person and subject to availability. For bookings visit
www.raileurope.co.uk or call 0844 848 4070. Personal callers are welcome at the Rail Europe Travel Centre, 1 Regent Street, London SW1Y 4XT.
For more information and best-value fares from National Express East Anglia please log on to
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